The Crest of a Master - Chapter 18 - PizzaSpino (2024)

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: The following is a work of fan fiction written by someone who enjoys creature collector franchises. Pokémon is owned by Nintendo, Game Freak, The Pokémon Company, Creatures Inc. and Satoshi Tajiri. Digimon is owned by Bandai, WiZ, Toei Animation, and Akiyoshi Hongo. If you want to support the official releases, worry not. Lord knows there is plenty of merchandise to choose from.

Listening to as I rehearse my lines: Kabuki (Derek and Brandon Fiechter)

The Crest of a Master Chapter 18: Stories and Vows

Professor Labramon’s Private Study

“I think we should stop here guys!” squeaked Shoemon.

Bokomon looked up from his essay. “Ah yes, the play was bumped up to tonight. The stage crew will need some help with the final touches.”

“And I need to double check Serena’s costume!” Shoemon added on. “Professor Labramon should be in the auditorium too. Let’s go!”

“Hmm,” even though his classmates were almost out the door, Neemon continued to sit at his desk.

Shoemon peeked back around the doorway. “What’s wrong, Neemon?”

“Something doesn’t feel right,” Neemon stared off into space. “There’s something wrong in this room.”

“Wrong in the room?” Shoemon hopped back into the classroom and looked around. Everything seemed like it was in its proper place, or at least as proper as the mess of research papers and artifact restoration kits could be. Flummoxed, Shoemon took a sniff of the air and immediately regretted it. “Ew! Neemon, was that you?”

Hearing Shoemon’s cry, Bokomon marched back into the classroom and straight up to Neemon. “Did you have beans again?”

Neemon thought for a moment before responding in song. “Beans, beans, the magical fruit. The more I eat, the more I…Whoa!”

The short musical number was cut off when Bokomon grabbed hold of Neemon’s pants and began dragging his classmate out the door. “Come on! Let’s get you to a bathroom. You’re a ticking time bomb like this.”Shoemon gave the room one final look around before hopping after her friends. There was a short pause before one of the piles of junk disappeared. In its place was a new Digimon. This Digimon silently slipped across the room and towards the door guarding Labramon’s documents.

The Digimon placed a clawed hand on the doorknob, only for the knob to stiffen. He gave the door a couple experimental jiggles, but it wouldn’t budge. Concentrating, the Digimon focused its energy. In response, the door lite up with a series of runes. Looks like the professor took extra precautions to protect his work. Judging by the runes used, it was probably a spell that would only be undone once an individual holding the key tried to gain access.

Safe to say, Labramon was the current key holder. All the intruder would have to do would be to grab the key and then sneak into the document room to find what he was looking for. The trick was to do all of this undetected. Looks like tonight was as good a time as any to deploy the distraction he had waiting in the woods.

A sly smile crept across the Digimon’s face. Lucky him. In addition to getting the documents he was hired to procure; he was going to get a chance to see these new humans in action.

The Dojo

“You’re a student?” Ash asked in surprise. “I thought you were one of the staff.”

“She might as well, be,” Gaomon, who had walked off of the fighting matt, said. “Renamon has been attending this school longer than any off us. She’s graduated from the regular courses and was about to head off to the Temple of the Crests, but certain events caused her to stay here for some extra training.”

While Gaomon spoke, he glanced at Serena who had drawn into herself a little.

“Top student material, huh?” Agumon said with a toothy grin. “No holding back.”

“Then may I suggest a change of location?” Renamon asked.

Ash blinked. “Why? This place seems fine to me.”

“Agumon can Digivolve to the champion level,” Renamon stated, earning some excited whispers from the crowd. “If we are not holding back then we should move to somewhere where he can attack without the floor breaking underneath his weight. There’s a clearing nearby where he should be able to move around and breathe fire without having to worry about causing any collateral damage.”

“I don’t need Greymon to defeat you,” Agumon scowled. “Ash and I are an invincible combo!”

“Dude,” whispered the Zubamon. “Take the handicap. Trust me, you’ll need it.”

Despite the advice, Agumon didn’t budge. Acknowledging her opponent’s resolve, Renamon folded her arms. “You may have the first move.”

Agumon held his place, waiting for Ash’s first order. Meanwhile, Ash looked over Renamon. It was easy to see that Renamon was confident, but not in the same way someone like Gary was. Gary expressed his confidence with a smarmy, in-your-face attitude sprinkled with multiple barbs. In contrast, Renamon’s attitude was cool and collected. She didn’t feel the need to rub anything in. In her mind, her victory was just a simple fact.

Well, Renamon was free to think whatever she wanted. Ash wasn’t going to hand her an easy win. He tried to think over what he knew about the fox. With her lean form and long limbs, Renamon had the makings of a fighting type which probably meant that she may have an edge in melee combat. However, Ash had yet to see Renamon engage in a fist fight and had only witnessed her Diamond Storm attack. He did not want to watch Agumon get skewered by a rain of knives.

“Go in and clamp down on one of her limbs,” Ash instructed. From the corner of his eye, he could see Serena beginning to fidget. Looking between him and Renamon. It looked like Serena was about to say something, but she just closed her mouth. Not sure what that was about, Ash continued. “If we immobilize her, then she won’t be able to use her Diamond Storm.”

“And it puts me in a good position to start grappling her,” Agumon surmised.

Before Agumon could charge forward, Gaomon interjected. “Ash, sir,” the dog spoke formally. “I know I’m just a spectator, but I must caution against this plan. Getting in close to Renamon is a big mistake. She’s very adept at marital arts.”

“That’s just another reason to pin her down,” Ash reasoned.

“Are you ready?” Renamon asked. “We haven’t been given a time limit. If your plan it to stall me out, you’ll have to rethink it.”

“We don’t need technicalities to beat you!” Ash declared. He was about to give his order when someone else spoke up.

“Renamon,” Serena said in a shaky voice. In a blink, the entire gym seemed to tense up. Ash stared in confusion. What would Serena have to say to Renamon right now? They were about to have a battle! Couldn’t it wait?

“You should probably move around,” said the girl uncomfortably. Was Serena trying to give Renamon an order? “They’re going to try and grab you.”

“What are you doing?!” Ash yelled, causing the girl to recoil. Serena seemed like such a nice girl! Why was she stabbing them in the back?

“Traitor!” Agumon roared. “Why did you give away our strategy?!”

“It wouldn’t matter if she gave you away or not. You plan is obvious, and I would have dodged it even if Serena hadn’t spoke up,” Renamon’s voice, already cool, turned downright cold. As she spoke, her eyes narrowed, but not at Ash or Agumon. She looked directly at Serena. “This entire exchange was redundant.”

“I’ll show you!” Agumon shouted. The reptile dashed forward and began slashing and biting at Renamon. True to Renamon’s word, the fox nimbly dodged and wove around Agumon’s attacks. If Ash wasn’t fighting her right now, he’d actually find it captivating. There was a fluidity and grace to Renamon’s movements that made her seem untouchable.

Finally having enough of Agumon’s failed attempts to hit her, Renamon swept her leg into Agumon. The round house kick was every bit as fluent as the rest of Renamon’s movements, but this time it packed a punch sending Agumon flying across the arena.

“Agumon, can you get up?” Ash called over to his partner.

Agumon just growled and rose to his feet to face Renamon. Taking that as a ‘yes,’ Ash gave Agumon his next idea. “Use your Pepper Breath! Then get her while she’s dodging the fire!”

“Renamon, you need to…” Serena started to call out to the fox, but Renamon just turned away and ignored her.

Sadly, Ash’s plan to limit Renamon’s movement with a volley of fire didn’t work. The fox was just as hard to hit even with the addition of fireballs. The only difference was this time Renamon didn’t let Agumon off with a simple kick. Instead, her tail coiled around Agumon, scooped him up from behind, and tossed him into the air. Renamon then followed this up by jumping up and hitting him multiple times, effectively air juggling the fire lizard. At the peak of Agumon’s climb, Renamon landed on the dojo floor, jumped up, and delivered an uppercut

Agumon plummeted to the floor below with a loud SMACK and lied still. From the side lines Yasyamon began the count.

Renamon addressed Ash. “I commend you for at least attempting a strategy, human. But it’s obvious that you are inexperienced. If I were to venture a guess, I’d say Agumon is the first monster who has allied himself with you. A stark contrast from the first human who had at least six monsters at his beck and call before he even arrived at our world.”

Ash felt his face heat up. “Well, I’ve been surviving in this world just fine, even if I only have Agumon!”

“Who have your opponents been?” Renamon asked. “Wild Digimon who can’t strategize? Bandits who retreat at the first sign of a challenge? Or low level Digimon that would be considered snacks to an average Greymon?”

Truthfully Ash has mostly just fought wild Digimon up until this battle. Some of them didn’t even bother fighting, they just heard Greymon’s roar and ran away. “What are you trying to say?”

“I’m saying that I could tell that you’ve had it easy,” Renamon’s stare hardened. “You battle as though you’ve been relying on Greymon’s brute strength to finish the job. You shouldn’t have just waited for your attack to fail before coming up with a new strategy. You should have been reorganizing and reacting on the spot.”

Ash was about to retort, when Serena spoke up. “You’re not being fair! Ash has just begun his Pokémon journey while you’ve been training for years!”

Renamon sharply turned her head towards Serena. “Our enemies will have centuries of experience and we have to defeat them. They will be at far higher levels then most Digimon ever dream of reaching and we will still have to fight them. They will not care about a level playing field and we will not receive silver medals if we don’t come out on top!”

Having said her part, Renamon turned to leave. “Based on what I’ve seen, I’d be surprised if the Digital World wasn’t rubble by the end of the month. Why our fate has been placed in the hands of a bunch of inept children is beyond me.”

“Take that back.”

Everyone in the dojo turned their attention to Agumon who was pushing back up to his feet. Smoke began pouring out of his nostrils while the scales on his head began to glow from excess heat. “Ash is a better trainer then you give him credit for. He’ going to be the best trainer, even better than the first human!”

Renamon didn’t look impressed. “Boasts are worthless. Care to tell me where your blind faith comes from?”

“Since I’ve been traveling with Ash, I’ve gotten stronger and stronger! You’ve only seen a fraction of what we’re capable of! You want evidence? Here’s a new move I’ve been working on with him!” Agumon opened his jaws to shoot out fire, but it wasn’t his usual Pepper Breath. Instead of a fireball, what poured out was a massive stream of flames which flooded the arena floor. “Spitfire Blast!”

For a moment, it looked like the raging inferno had consumed Renamon. This illusion was shattered when the fox leapt from the flames and fired her own attack at Agumon’s feet. “Diamond Storm!”

The intensity of the flames mixed with the volatile energy from Renamon’s attack to create a miniature explosion which sent Agumon flying out of the arena. The reptile fell into a pile of dummies, eyes spiraling from exhaustion.

Spotting Agumon’s condition, Yasyamon made his call. “Not only has Agumon been pushed out of the arena, but he is unable to battle. Renamon wins! Can someone please hand me a fire extinguisher?”

While Ash went over to help Agumon up, he spotted Serena jogging up to Renamon with a fire extinguisher. “Renamon,” it sounded to Ash like Serena was trying to project an aura of authority and failing. “I get that you’re…concerned about the team, but you shouldn’t take it out on Ash or Agumon. They are our teammates, and we should try and get along with them.”

At first Renamon seemed to be ignoring Serena again, just doing her part to help the rest of the class put out the fire. When she was done, she just walked away. “I’ll take that under advisem*nt.”

Ash blinked in surprise. Why did Serena keep trying to talk to Renamon? The fox made it perfectly clear what she thought of their team. It wasn’t like Renamon was going to start listening to Serena like she was her trai…oh.

Carrying Agumon on his back, Ash walked up to Serena. “Serena, is Renamon your Digimon partner?”

Serena didn’t verbally respond. The droop in her shoulders said it all.

Mess Hall

While the dojo was cleaned up, Serena and Ash took Agumon to the infirmary. The school nurses were able to get the rookie back on his feet, but it was obvious by the scowl on the reptile’s face that his pride was going to take a bit longer to recover.

Knowing that she was on thin ice for attempting to help Renamon during the battle, Serena tried to get back on Agumon’s good side by suggesting that they all go grab dinner at the school’s cafeteria. Agumon continued to look sour, but didn’t say no.

In contrast to his partner, Ash didn’t seem to hold a grudge against Serena for trying to help Renamon. But he clearly had more questions. Serena told him that she would explain when they met up with the rest of their team as she didn’t want to tell the same story over again, which was partially true. In reality she just wanted to put off reliving her first day in the Digital World.

Luckily for Serena, Ash seemed like he was the guy who existed in the moment. He practically forgot all about his questions when food was mentioned and was now currently marveling at the school’s mess hall.

Just like the dojo, the mess hall was a large building held up by multiple trees. Inside was your standard school cafeteria, if the construction crew modelled it after a log cabin. From their spot at the back of the line, Ash and Serena were able to take in the assortment of decorations lining the wall ranging from flags with sigils to photos of different classes. The walls themselves were painted like many of the other treehouses in the area with different murals, the most prominent pictures depicting a saber-toothed cat with a large mane, a wooden horse, and a Digimon which resembled a Torterra with two heads.

As the line pushed the two towards the serving counter, the pair was able to see the chef. It was a large, round bug with a golden exoskeleton and a necklace comprised of pink beads. It used its numerous limbs to prepare multiple trays at once making the line move fairly fast.

Of course, Ash still had time to scan the cafeteria worker. “Kongoumon, armor level. He’s a Digimon well versed in all holy works and can send his foes flying using his Popper attack. Doesn’t sound like the kind of guy you’d have for cafeteria work.”

“You know, that’s what they all say,” Kongoumon casually remarked grabbing a tray for Ash. “But you know what I say? Just go with the flow. Life will take you all kinds of places, man. Don’t let your species decide your fate.”

The giant beetle scooped some rice into a bowl. “Take yourself for example. I’ve never seen an Ignitemon that wasn’t armed to the teeth. But hey, you do you.”

“Uh, I’m a human,” Ash corrected.

“Oh! That explains the lack of fangs. And claws. And explosions,” Kongoumon leaned forward and offered Ash a fist to bump while his other hands were dumping curry on to the plate. “Righteous. Nice to meet you. Where’s your Digimon partner, little buddy?”

Ash returned the fist bump and motioned to Agumon who was sitting at an empty table. The reptile was fully healed from his earlier fight and was now glaring across the cafeteria at Renamon. “He’s been down ever since his fight with Renamon.”

“Ya, she’ll do that you,” Kongoumon nodded in understanding.

Serena came up beside Ash. “How’s your evening been, Kongoumon?”

“Ah! There’s the womon of the hour! Great to see you again before you hit the road,” Kongoumon greeted the girl.

“I think everyone is going to be staying the night,” Serena reminded the laid-back scarab. “I’ll probably see you at breakfast.”

“Awesome! You’ll need plenty of carbs and protein for your hike. Guess I can bump up breakfast burrito day. And pack some muffins for the ro-roa-road,” Kongoumon’s mandibles began to tremble. “Our little girl. All grown up and heading out into the Digital World.”

Before the massive bug could break down into tears, a Tentomon flew up to the counter. “Mr. Kongoumon! Do you have some spared bottled water?”

Kongoumon wiped his compound eyes with one of his free hands and pointed to a small crate against the wall with another. “Got you covered.”

“Thank you, sir!” the Tentomon flew over to the box and zoomed out of the room.

“Where’s he going?” Ash asked.

“Not sure if you’ve heard, but the students wanted to put together a small show for you guys as a sendoff,” Kongoumon smiled, or at least as close to a smile as various insect mouth parts can get. He then opened a pot and peered inside. “Ah, shoot. Out of vegetables. Wait here.”

Ash’s eyes widened. “Whoa! A play!” He turned to Serena. “Did you know about this?”

“I’ve been living her for the past few weeks. I may have heard of it,” Serena said, playfully sticking out her tongue. Actually, now that she thought about it, this might be a good time to get to know Ash outside of his Digital World adventures. “Hey Ash, do you like plays?”

“Plays?” Ash stared off, recalling an old memory. “I guess? Most of the plays I saw were for kids, not sure if that counts. Oh wait!”

Ash looked over at Serena with a grin. “This happened when I was five. My mom and my neighbor’s mom took us and his older sister to Johto. My neighbor’s mom wanted to have some adult time with my mom so Daisy, that’s the older sister, said she’d babysit me and Gary, who was my neighbor.”

Gary, wasn’t that the guy Ash had been arguing with in the chats?

Ash continued. “Daisy thought she could keep us busy if she took us to a play, but I think the play was meant for adults because neither of us understood what was going on. So we snuck off to see where all the Pokémon used for special effects were.”

“That sounds pretty dangerous,” Serena said giving Ash a look of scrutiny.

“Yeah, but we weren’t thinking about that at the time,” Ash scratched the back of his neck. “They stopped the play to look for us. While that was happening, we were hanging out with this Quilava they used for the pyrotechnics. It was pretty fun.”

The smile on Ash’s face fell. “Until they found us. When my mom learned what happened, she practically exploded.”

“I’d probably do the same thing if my kid ran away from his babysitter,” Serena remarked.

“Oh yeah? It’s not like you could sit through a boring play when you were five,” Ash huffed.

“As a matter of fact, I was able to,” Serena teased. It was her turn for a story. “My mom’s a professional Pokémon racer and travels all around Kalos to compete in different races. Most of the time she left me with a sitter, but sometimes I’d go with her. One of those times was when she was invited to a play as a guest.”

“What happened next?” Ash prompted.

“Nothing. I just went to the play,” Serena shrugged. “I didn’t really understand the plot at the time. There was a guy who stole some bread and there was singing, I didn’t really follow. It all went over my head at the time. But I did like the costumes and the musical numbers.”

“Huh, guess some people are meant for theater and some aren’t,” Ash surmised, folding his arms.

“I defiantly know which category Serena fall into,” Kongoumon laughed returning with a steaming pot. “She’s practically starring in our show!”

“Starring!?” Ash turned back to Serena in surprise.

“Well, I wouldn’t say starring,” Serena responded bashfully. “The real stars are the students. I just started helping them out and got roped in to the narrator roll.”

“Don’t be modest,” Kongoumon started scooping vegetables onto the trays. “I hear you also helped polish the choreography and costumes. I also hear you got roped into doing some dancing yourself.”

“It’s nothing big,” Serena waved him off. “Everyone wanted to have a turn to perform with me, so I just kind of hopped in. The real stars are the students, they’re doing the bulk of the work.”

“Is Renamon helping?” Ash asked.

Immediately, Kongoumon began laughing.

“That’s telling,” Ash noted, picking up his and Agumon’s trays.

“You don’t know the half of it,” Serena sighed as she picked up hers. Renamon didn’t really speak with her often, but Serena could practically feel the fox’s disapproving gaze every time she did something fun.

Renamon’s partnership kind of felt like a sick joke. For the longest time she was looking forward to starting her own Pokémon journey to get out of the house and explore Kalos. She had even picked out which starter she wanted: the adorable fox, Fennekin. Some days Serena would daydream of the adventures she would go on with her new friend. Cooking, hiking, touring through all the different towns and cities in Kalos big and small without a care in the world.

Now Serena had herself a fox monster, but Renamon was not what she envisioned. Renamon wasn’t cute or cuddly. She was beautiful, no one could deny that, but there wasn’t anything during her interactions with Serena that suggested she was interested in hanging out or being friends. Renamon was all business.

Whether it was cooking.

“No, I do not want to bake cookies,” Serena remembered Renamon saying when Serena tried to invite the fox to hang out and get to know each other after a disastrous first day. “If you want to practice cooking, I suggest you ask Kongoumon about scavenging and how to prepare meals in hostile environments.”

Exploring.

“Why did you stray from the school?!” Renamon yelled. The rookie had just finished slaying a wild Kuwagamon by hitting the weak spots on its armored exoskeleton with surgical accuracy.

Admittedly Renamon’s anger wasn’t unfounded, Serena was warned about the wild Digimon. But after a week of being cooped up in a strange school waiting for the other humans Serena wanted to see if there was some clue on how she was supposed to save the Digital World or get home.

“Did we not warn you about the wild Digimon which roam these woods?” Renamon continued. “Did you think you could just walk around like it was a park? Never go off on your own without my supervision you stupid little girl!”

Or just simple conversation.

“Is there anywhere you want to visit?” Serena asked Renamon on one of the few occasions she mustered up the nerve to talk to the cold fox.

“Not particularly, no,” Renamon responded. “We shouldn’t focus on where we want to be. We need to plan about where we are going to go.”

“Actually, I was just talking with the other humans about that,” Serena revealed. “It turns out the Digivice can communicate with other Digivices.”

For once, Renamon looked interested. “What did the other humans say?”

“We all have the same plan Shurimon gave us. Go to the temple. But instead of doing it alone, we’re going to go in groups. If we wait here, some of the other humans and their Digimon should show up and we can travel to the temple together. You, know. Safety in numbers.”

“A sound strategy,” Renamon nodded. For a moment, Serena’s spirits raised. That was the first time Renamon complemented her since their disastrous sparing match with Gaomon.

“Serena,” Renamon was able to grab Serena’s attention with a firm voice. “When we set off on our journey, I don’t want your input in combat. If you can figure out how to make me Digivolve, do that. Otherwise leave all the fighting to me.”

“But I’m you trainer,” Serena was about to argue back, alas her words fell on deaf ears. Renamon had already vanished.

Back to Now

From her spot next to Ash, Serena could see Renamon sitting on the other side of the cafeteria. The fox was all by herself, calmly and diligently eating a humble meal without so much as glancing up at her surroundings.

“Got your food,” Ash said to Agumon, sliding the rookie a tray.

“I’m not hungry,” Agumon grumbled as he began shoving the meal into his mouth.

“You should conduct yourself with more grace. Most Digimon are looking to the chosen Digimon as a source of inspiration and hope.”

All three of the table occupants looked over to the end to see Gaomon passing by with his own tray.

“Gaomon!” Ash greeted the blue dog. He began waving Gaomon over. “Come over here!”

For a beat, Gaomon hesitated. He then slid down next to Agumon and removed his boxing gloves revealing the dexterous, blistered and bruised paws underneath.

“You should get someone to look at those,” Serena noted eyeing the paws.

Gaomon just shrugged. “I don’t have the luxury of a human partner to lend me power. I need to work harder if I want to stand on my own in battle.”

“Serena is right. You should let someone look at them.”

Sliding in next to Ash on the human side of the table was Brock. Gotsumon and Geodude followed along taking up spots next to Agumon and Gaomon on the monster side. “Here,” Brock held out his hand. “I’ve got some extra supplies from Labramon’s pack in the infirmary. Let me look at your hands."

Gaomon’s eyes darted back and forth between his meal and Brock’s hand. Eventually he relented and allowed Brock to look at one of his paws.

While Brock doctored Gaomon’s hands, Gotsumon looked over at Ash and Agumon. “So, you fought Renamon.”

Ash blinked in surprise. “How did you know?”

“The entire school is talking about it,” Gotsumon responded scooping some curry into his jaws.

Agumon groaned and collapsed his face into his food.

“I wouldn’t be too hard on yourself,” Gaomon remarked, forking his food with his free paw. “From what I hear, Renamon has been studying here since she was an in-training.”

“That long?” Ash asked. “Are in-trainings even able to fight?”

“Not really, or at least they don’t have any substantial moves. Most of their abilities are basically blind a predator with some bubbles and run away,” Gotsumon shrugged. “Or you just spit rocks at them. That’s what I did.”

“Does this school take in any in-trainings? I haven’t seen them,” Brock asked while he gently dabbed Gaomon’s blisters with some kind of cream.

“No. I heard that Renamon was taken in by Shurimon when most of Sakuyamon’s kingdom went to war,” Serena said. “I also heard that Renamon was a part of the queen’s court.”

“Sakuyamon, Renamon mentioned her yesterday,” Ash took out his Digivice. After feeding Sakuyamon’s name into the Digidex, a hologram of a Digimon which resembled a woman appeared. She was dressed in golden and purple armor on top of a black and white bodysuit. In her hand was a staff with multiple golden rings at the top. Her silvery hair was pulled back into two long pigtails and upon her head was a fox shaped helmet which matched with the various fox spirits that flew around her. “Sakuyamon, mega level. She’s a priestess and a powerful magic user who can create a purifying field using her Amethyst Mandala attack or summon pipe foxes to fight alongside her. Are you sure she’s a Digimon? She looks pretty human to me.”

“I think she just looks pretty period,” Brock said with a blush on his face which earned him a side-eye from Gotsumon.

“I assure you; she is in fact a Digimon. And a powerful one at that,” Gaomon said with a nod.

“And you’re saying she was a queen?” Ash asked.

Serena answered him this time. “That’s what everyone says. From what I hear she used to own the land this forest is on and then some. But when The Forces of Chaos began their war campaign, a call was put out for as many able bodied Digimon to join in and stop them and Millenniummon.”

“Let me guess,” Gotsumon drawled in distaste. “She sent out as many citizens to the front line as she could to have them act as digi-shields.”

“Actually, she was the first the volunteer,” Gaomon said. “It was only after she signed up with the Celestial Army that most of her kingdom followed her to the fight.”

“…Shoot, that’s actually respectable,” Gotsumon grumbled.

“Wait, I’m still lost,” Ash probed, clearly puzzled. “Why is Renamon here?”

“Because you don’t put in-trainings on the front line, genius,” Gotsumon replied with an eye roll.

“That’s not what I meant,” Ash replied heatedly. “I’m asking why there aren’t other in-trainings.”

“On the front lines?” Serena asked with the co*ck of her head.

“I think what Ash is asking if there were other in-trainings in Queen Sakuyamon’s court that grew up at this school,” Brock elaborated. “I’m kind of curious myself. In-trainings strike me as the Digimon equivalent of a little kid. What role would they play in a royal court?”

“Training them,” Gotsumon replied. “Digimon who are high enough on the social ladder sometimes don’t want just anyone to be their apprentices. They find eggs and raise a Digimon from birth.”

The rock monster played around a bit with a piece of potato on his plate. “They also hatch and train servants from birth too, but no one cares about those guys. If Renamon was hatched to serve a queen, it was probably as one of the more important roles otherwise why bother sending her to a school like this one."

“Someone important in a queen’s court,” Ash muttered. “This is a school for warriors. Maybe she was supposed to be a knight, or an elite guard, or maybe a general.”

Brock decided to throw his two cents in. “Maybe. But remember, the entire Digital World is at war now. She may have originally been hatched for something different like a treasurer or a priestess and changed her profession when everyone went to fight.”

“No one knows,” Serena had also spent a fair amount of time pondering over her partner’s past. She had heard various rumors ranging from a palace guard to a nobleman’s heir. There was another rumor that was so outlandish that Serena almost dismissed it on the spot, though a part of her couldn’t help but to wonder.

“Whatever her role would have been, it doesn’t seem to mean much to her. She never flaunts it,” Gaomon had taken both of his paws back from Brock and was now diligently eating his meal. “She did seem passionate about her status as a chosen Digimon. When she discovered she was one of the reincarnated partners of the first human, she doubled down on her studies and training.”

Serena began to feel her stomach tie in knots.

Gaomon continued. “She was always an admirable classmate, strict in her studies and even more so in her training. But after she received her Digivice, I could feel the extra vigor she put into her fighting.”

Pictures flashed through Serena’s mind of Renamon practicing day in and day out. Striving to be worthy of a fabled trainer of legend.

“So why doesn’t she like Serena?” Ash blurted out. “When we were fighting in the dojo, she was brushing off Serena left and right.”

“Yeah,” Agumon lifted his food covered muzzle from his tray. “What was that about? Serena was trying to give Renamon a bunch of orders, but Renamon didn’t even wait for some of them.”

Gaomon glanced over a Serena. “Well, you see…I mean, it’s not my place to say…”

“It’s alright Gaomon,” Serena gave the dog a weak smile. “We’re already talking about it. I’ll tell the story.”

Taking a deep breath, Serena began recalling her first day in the Digital World. “It all started when I got my Digivice. It was the middle of the night…”

“Wait, it was morning for me,” Ash stated in confusion.

“I’m from Kalos, remember? It’s in a completely different time zone,” Serena said with a little laugh. She probably should have been annoyed by Ash’s interruption, but she was going to take any bit of levity she could get.

“The Digivice came crashing through my house’s roof and into my bedroom,” Serena could still remember her mom’s Rhyhorn’s panicked roars coming from the yard below and the sound of her mom scrambling to get out of bed.

“At first, I thought it was a large Pokémon that was knocked out of the sky. I was surprised when I saw a purple glowing device floating towards me.”

“Let me guess,” Brock brought his hand to his chin. “You felt a sudden urge to reach out to the device.”

Serena nodded. She could still remember breaking out of her trance and being pulled into the sky. Looking down below she could see light flooding into her room, meaning her mom just missed seeing her daughter getting carried off into the stratosphere.

“Wait a minute,” Ash’s eyes looked down at Serena’s clothes. “If it was night, wouldn’t you be in your pajamas?”

Pinching her blouse, Serena explained. “After my first day here, I met Shoemon and together we were able to throw together some clothes like the ones I like to wear back home.”

“So, you were in pajamas when you first arrived here?” Ash asked.

“Yeah,” it was a pretty funny image looking back at it. Her first day at Digimon school, and she was stuck in pajamas which really added to the dream-like feeling she had at the time. “I probably looked silly back then, waking up on the forest floor, Professor Shurimon walking towards me. I don’t think I’ve ever screamed so hard in my life.”

“Don’t feel bad,” Agumon gave her a comforting grin. “Ash freaked out too!”

“You were right in my face,” Ash deadpanned.

“I don’t think it was that bad,” Agumon shrugged. “I guess humans just really like their personal space.”

Gotsumon mirrored Ash’s deadpan. “No. That’s not just a human thing.”

“Can we please stop interrupting the story,” Gaomon said, annoyance very evident in his voice.

“Anyway,” Serena took another deep breath. Here’s the part where everything went downhill. Well, more downhill. The alien abduction wasn’t exactly an ideal start. “After I woke up in the forest, Professor Shurimon escorted me to the school where I was introduced to Renamon.”

“How did it go?” Brock prompted.

“All things considered, pretty well,” Serena remembered her first time walking through the treehouse campus. She felt exactly like Dorothy in “The Wizard of Oz” (minus the Lillipup), if Dorothy landed in a village of talking Pokémon instead of munchkins. And the good witch was a plant man armed with shurikens.

After making their way past the crowd of curious students, Shurimon lead Serena to a private room where he told her all about the Digital World, the war, and the prophecy. To top off the overwhelming experience, Serena was introduced to her Digimon counterpart: Renamon.

Contrary to the weeks to come, Renamon greeted Serena with an air of respect. Even going so far as to genuflect before Serena like a knight before a queen. At the time, Serena was gobsmacked. This was very different from how she pictured meeting her first Pokémon. The only thing that kept her sane was the notion that she might be dreaming.

“Renamon actually kneeled before you?” Agumon’s head tilted. “Huh, I just took Ash to my village’s elder. He was pretty spooked at first, but we were able to get him up to speed.”

“Better than my first interaction with Brock,” Gotsumon jerked a thumb in Geodude’s direction. “Certain individuals jumped out of their balls to try and form a rock barrier when the village elder attempted to take Brock’s unconscious body into a hut.”

Smiling proudly, Geodude just gave the group a big shrug.

For his part, Brock motioned for Serena to continue. “Alright. So, you and Renamon started out on good terms. What changed?”

Serena frowned. “Renamon wanted me to get a feel for how she fights.”

Gaomon spoke up. “I volunteered to be her opponent for the bout. I had always considered Renamon a rival figure, though I don’t think she every saw me or any of the other students as on her level. Throughout my time at this school, she was untouchable.”

Seeing Serena’s hands ball into fist, Gaomon sighed. “That match was the first time I won.”

Serena could still remember that battle. The massive crowd of students, Gaomon standing opposite her looking pumped just at the prospect at fighting a human, and Renamon standing in front of her. Despite her calm and cool persona, Renamon also had a pep in her step, clearly looking forward to showing her human what her new Digimon partner can do.

It was only once the battle took off that Renamon realized how unqualified Serena was. Every command was a misstep. Blows Renamon would normally dodge landed without a challenge. Serena’s timing was completely off, which was fine for a beginning trainer. But against a school of warriors, she was not going to cut it.

The battle ended with Gaomon declared the victor. Serena tried to apologize to Renamon and explain that while she wants to help, she’s not a professional trainer. Renamon just had this look on her face like she was the victim of some cruel prank.

“I tried to talk to Renamon a couple of times afterwards, but I just couldn’t find a way to connect with her,” Serena said, staring down at her tray. “So, I just stopped trying.”

Brock frowned. “Sounds about right. I’ve seen this before.”

Both Serena and Ash looked over at the older trainer. “You have?” Serena asked, pretty sure that Brock hadn’t seen many trainers partnered with Digimon.

“Every so often I’ve come across trainers with Pokémon who don’t view them as worthy,” Brock explained. “As a result, the Pokémon would often disobey or just ignore their human even in the heat of battle.”

“Yeah, that does sound about right,” Serena watched the fox in question place her empty tray in the pile of dirty dishes and leave the mess hall without so much as glancing in Serena’s direction.

“And we don’t have any badges to get Renamon to start listening,” Ash said, arms crossed.

Serena blinked in surprise. “Badges?”

“Oh! I remember this!” Agumon called out, waving a claw in the air like he was trying to get called on in class. “Badges are what trainers get when they defeat a gym!”

“You’ve got it,” Brock confirmed. “What Ash is refereeing to is an old myth that if you collect enough badges, any Pokémon will listen to you.”

“That’s a myth?” Ash said in surprise.

Brock elaborated. “Sort of. It’s not so much the badges that get Pokémon to respect you as it’s what they represent. For example, say you had a very disobedient Pokémon who didn’t think you were smart enough to issue orders. If I were to just hand you a badge that probably wouldn’t change that Pokémon’s perspective. But if you earned your badge in combat, that Pokémon would see your skills and be more likely to listen to you. Or you would develop the battle skills while you were training to take on me or other stronger trainers.”

“I see,” Agumon said in understanding. “What you’re saying is that Renamon isn’t listening to Serena because she isn’t experienced enough to handle her?”

“Exactly,” Brock gave Serena an apologetic look. “I think what’s happening here is that Renamon was expecting a trainer on the same level as the first human. Which, as far as I’ve seen, none of us are. You don’t have to feel guilty, Serena. This was just a bad mismatch.”

Serena offered Brock her own smile. “Thanks Brock.”

There was loud SLAM as Ash’s hands hit the table to push him up. Ash was about to walk away when Gotsumon called over to him. “Where are you going?”

“To find Renamon and give her a piece of my mind,” Ash declared.

Immediately, Serena seized Ash by the wrist. “Don’t! That will just make things worse!”

“Why not?” Ash questioned heatedly. “It’s not like you asked to be her trainer! She doesn’t have to treat you like trash!”

“Please listen to me!” Serena pled. “Other Digimon at this school have tried to talk to Renamon for me and she didn’t take it well.”

Serena could still remember the cold look of disappointment when Renamon confronted her. “I’ve heard from several Digimon that you are not satisfied with my behavior. If that is how you feel you should have come to me yourself.”

Sharp and bitter, Serena knew what Renamon really meant to call her.

Coward.

“I wonder what’s going on there,” Brock broke Serena out of memories. She looked over to what he was referring to and saw some of the older students gathered around one of the teachers, Professor Frogmon.

“It’s because of me,” Misty had walked over with Betamon and Staryu in tow. Both Pokémon and Digimon looked on edge with Betamon’s fin sparking and Staryu facing every which way, limbs stiff, ready to attack.

“Misty! Where have you been?” Agumon scolded the redhead. “You missed Serena’s backstory!”

“She can tell it to me later,” Misty replied in a dead serious voice. “We might be in trouble.”

Misty told everyone about her encounter with Sagittarimon. “I tried to find him to ask more about what his death threat meant; I was told that Professor Sagittarimon was out on patrol.”

“You think it may have been a fake?” Serena’s eyes wondered around the cafeteria. If someone could sneak in and pose as Sagittarimon, could they do it with anyone else?

“We think it might have been a shapeshifter,” Betamon confirmed with a tremble in her voice.

Ash’s eyes widened at this revelation. “Digimon can shapeshift?”

“Yep,” Gotsumon explained. “For the most part it’s just Digimon who just have that skill programmed into them like Bakemon or Fangmon. But I have heard of some Digimon who have learned how to do it without it being one of their natural skills. It’s considered a technique you’d need to at least be ultimate level to achieve.”

“An ultimate level already. Wonderful,” Misty responded, voice dripping with sarcasm.

“What gets me is the tip off itself,” Brock muttered in contemplation. “If it was trying to sneak around, why give itself away? Is it just messing with us?”

“Or maybe he’s confident we won’t catch him,” Serena supplied darkly. She kept thinking about that warning of a quick and painful death. “Or even if we do catch him, we won’t be able to do anything to stop him.”

Away from the School

Broker leaned up against a tree while he watched a small swarm of fireflies float around a small stream. He was up high, sitting down on a large branch, letting one of his digitigrade legs casually dip over the edge along with his twin tails. “For a Digimon with super speed, you sure are late.”

Below Broker, another Digimon walked towards the stream. “I’m the one who sets the time, Broker.”

“But of course!” Broker hoped up onto his feet and addressed the ultimate. “Now, are you ready to take on the humans? All four of them have finally assembled at the school.”

The ultimate gave a grunt of confirmation. “You’ve had a chance to see them. What is your assessment?”

Broker’s ears co*cked forward. “What will you pay me for it?”

“Your life!” snarled the ultimate, brandishing his sickle claws.

“Hm, I do value that,” despite his words, Broker didn’t sound all that threatened. He just casually scratched the chin of his muzzle as he spoke. “Betamon’s tamer has some spunk and is very proud of her pet. I didn’t really get a chance to talk to the other two humans, but it sounds like the Gotsumon’s human is in charge of inventory. I suspect he has some pets as well judging by the balls on his belt.”

Broker continued. “The entire school is a buzz about the Agumon and his human’s back-to-back sparing matches. Sounds like that human is just as battle hungry as his Digimon, but their technique could use some work. And finally the Renamon and her human are completely out of sync. That girl would be better off is she was partnered with any other Digimon.”

“All in all, I’d say they’re pretty underwhelming,” Leaning forward, Broker gave the ultimate a sly smirk. “Think you can handle them?”

The ultimate said nothing. Instead, it just walked over to a large bolder and sliced it straight down the middle.

Renamon

After learning about the imposter, Renamon joined the staff and upper classmen to search the school. She spent a fair amount of time leaping from treehouse to treehouse checking every nook and cranny as well as questioning any student she came across to see if there was anything amiss. Sadly there were no signs of an intruder to be found.

Letting a group of students carrying props go, Renamon’s eyes narrowed in disgust. Even if there hadn’t been an intruder in their midst, how could these Digimon be so relaxed? There was a war in progress and a doomsday on the horizon! Didn’t anyone realize how much was at stake?

Years ago

Viximon scampered into the plane’s cargo hold as fast as her stubby legs could take her. As a small, fuzz ball of a fox, she knew she had to find someplace to hide where her bright yellow fur, fluffy tail, and large ears wouldn’t give away her position.

Behind that crate, perfect!

Viximon dove behind the box and tucked her appendages close to her body. The passengers on this Cargodramon were not leaving without her!

“Attention passengers,” Viximon stilled when she heard the voice of the captain come over the intercom. “Before we take off, could someone please report to the cargo hold? It appears we may have a stowaway.”

Oh no! How did Cargodramon know she was here!? Well, it made some sense, she was in his body after all. But she was so sneaky! She needed to find a new hiding place and fast!

Hearing a pair of heavy feet approaching, Viximon tried to dive into a tight space between some boxes of supplies. She wasn’t fast enough. A large paw-like hand snatched her just before she could squeeze into her new hiding spot.

Now, instead of the cold metal floors of a Cargodramon, Viximon found herself on top of the hand of a large humanoid fox dressed in onmyōji robes and an eboshi hat. Viximon was very familiar with this Digimon. His name was Taomon.

“Princess,” Taomon said in a voice that was simultaneously stern and gentle. “What are you doing here?”

Ears folded back and tail wrapped around her body, Viximon responded. “I’m going to the front lines with you guys to help everyone fight.”

“Don’t be so quick to grow up,” Taomon said with a smile. “Savor being an in-training while you still can. Leave the fighting to your subjects.”

“This isn’t good-bye forever,” came Cargodramon’s voice over the intercom. “We’ll be back.”

“That’s what everyone says about Queen Sakuyamon and nobody’s heard from her in ages!” protested Viximon.

“That is concerning,” Taomon admitted, seeing no way around the harsh truth. “But that’s the reason everyone is heading out. To find her and help her with her mission.”

“Then let me help too!” Viximon squeaked as she stood up taller. Or as tall as her tiny legs would allow. “I’m good at hide and go seek! I can track her down!”

“Perhaps, but you are still small and inexperienced,” Taomon steadily explained. “There are Digimon out there that are more dangerous than the palace’s staff. If you were to fight as you are now, you would be killed.”

“But, but, what if you die!?” Viximon ran across Taomon’s hand and placed her front paws on his chest. “Who's going to play with me and watch the stars, and tell me stories, and, and,” Viximon’s eyes weld up with tears and her voice gave way to the cries of a small child.

Taomon hushed her and petted the tiny fox. He held her close to his chest. “How about I tell you one more story before we head out?”

Hiccupping, Viximon tried to wipe away her tears to look up at her mentor for what may be their final story time.

Seeing that he had the princess’s attention, Taomon began. “Once upon a time, there was a queen. Powerful as she was, the queen was also wise. Wise enough to know that her reign would not last forever. So, she went from village to village visiting their nurseries to find an egg who she could hatch and raise it to be her successor. Finally, she found an egg which she sensed held great potential.”

When the egg was mentioned, Taomon once again gently pet Viximon who hand curled into him. “Years passed and that egg refused to hatch. The queen’s court tried to convince her to choose a new egg, but the queen was insistent on keeping the egg she chose. She told her court that everything happens for a reason, and that this Digi-egg will hatch when it was needed.”

Taomon stood up and walked out of Cargodramon. “One day, the queen received a summons to war. An evil Digimon was beginning to blink back into existence and would threaten the whole world. Loving both her world and her people, the queen answered the summons.”

As he continued to speak, Taomon strolled through the mostly empty halls of the palace until he came upon the rock garden. “It was only after the queen left that the egg finally hatched and do you know what I think? I think that egg took so long to hatch because it was needed here and now. But I don’t think that Digimon is ready for her responsibilities just yet. That Digimon’s story is just beginning.”

Taomon placed Viximon on a rock in the garden. “I’ll call a servant to see to you. A friend of mine will be coming over shortly. He has just opened an academy to help young Digimon like yourself fight and survive in these uncertain times. Can I trust you to diligently study until you’re ready to fulfill the purpose our queen has chosen you for?”

There was still a tremble in her voice, but Viximon was still able to answer with a small “Yes.”

Satisfied, Taomon left the princess in the garden. Viximon, on the other hand, was not content. As she heard the fleet of Cargodramons taking off, she climbed to the top of the tallest rock she could find and called after the aircrafts and everyone on board. “I’ll train hard! I’ll become the greatest warrior and save the Digital World! You’ll see!”

Now

Renamon never heard back from Taomon again. A part of her wanted to think that it was just because he was busy and that Digimon on the front lines couldn’t afford to send letters. But she knew the truth. Every day Digimon were dying while she was forced to play the role of a glorified babysitter in a farce of a prophecy.

As she thought back on her interactions with her “trainer,” Renamon’s lips curled in disgust. It was bad enough that the human she was sent knew nothing about strategies or fighting. But instead of buckling down and trying improve herself, Serena chose to disregard her duty. Instead of trying to make the best of her situation she wasted her time with meaningless hobbies like baking and idle gossip.

Sighing, Renamon made her way into one of the classrooms. This classroom had been turned into a makeshift storage unit for the various art pieces and artifacts Labramon was sent to research or restore. The room was almost completely stuffed, save for a clearing by a mural on the wall.

This mural was not a picture of some ancient Digimon or landscape, but a collection of handprints and paw prints of various Digimon who visited the tree hideout during Millenniummon’s first manifestation. Seven prints in particular garnered Renamon’s attention.

The first print was large and close to the floor indicating that while the beast who left this mark was big, it had a stout body.

The second print was smaller but higher up. Its fingers were long, suggesting some level of dexterity. Each of its three fingers were tipped with a sharp claw.

The third print was at the same height as the second print but was just as hefty as the first print meaning it stood up like the second print’s owner despite having a heavier build like the first print’s owner.

The forth print was even bigger than the other prints and slightly higher than the second and the third. If the patch of flooring that looked slightly different than the surrounding floor was any indication, the monster that stood there may have damaged the floors without even moving. Perhaps due to the monster’s weight?

The fifth print was the smallest print and was closest to the floor. The smallest member of the group also appeared to have paws, but they ended with tiny fingers showing some level of dexterity.

The sixth print had always captivated Renamon’s attention. It was clearly that of a bird’s talon, but the wood around the print was always cold. Even on the hottest day of the year.

The final print was clearly human. A taller human then Serena or any of the new arrivals, but the five long fingers branching out from a square palm could not be mistaken. Renamon knew this was the handprint of a human before she even knew what a human looked like.

There they were, the marks left by seven strangers. According to Professor Labramon, the human and his six foreign monsters were separated from the rest of their team for a period in the Firmware Forest where he met up with the ambassador for the Nature Spirits, a Digimon who would later join the human in his quest to defeat Millenniummon.

Ever since Renamon first arrived at this school, she found some comfort in the presence of the prints. They offered her a feeling of nostalgia that she didn’t quite understand until the Digivice singled her out as one of the human’s former comrades. She would often come to this room when she needed to meditate or just for a bit of privacy. Even when it became a massive storage closet.

It was thanks to Renamon’s frequent visits that she was able to come across a certain museum piece that Labramon had hidden away for later restoration. Reaching over to the pile of antiques, Renamon pulled out the artifact.

The item in question was a replica of the helmet worn by Kentaurosmon sent to Labramon by the Castle of the Royal Knights. Looking down at the surface of the helmet, Renamon stared into her own reflection.

“This journey hasn’t even started yet and already everything is going south,” Renamon said into the makeshift mirror. “What would you have done?”

“I knew I would find you here!”

Despite her urge to jump in surprise, Renamon kept her composure and looked over at the room’s entrance. There stood Shurimon. Before the plant ninja could come any closer, Renamon stopped him with a question. “Where did you find me when you picked me up from my home?”

“Sleeping in the rock garden, disguised as a rock no less,” chuckled Renamon’s teacher. Then it was his turn for a question. “What was my nickname for you back then?”

Renamon’s ears pinned back. “Could you ask me a different question?”

“If you don’t answer my question, I’ll have to assume you’re the intruder,” Shurimon said, though the light hearted way he spoke indicated that he already was well aware he was talking to the genuine article.

Sighing, Renamon gave in to her sensei’s demand. “Little Puff.”

Shurimon chuckled before switching to a serious tone. “I take it you haven’t seen any signs of the rogue Digimon?”

“No, I have not,” Renamon admitted.

“He’s either a master of stealth or has already left our premises,” Shurimon theorized. “To be safe, we’ll need to check the student body. I want you to join the rest of the students in the auditorium. Keep an eye out for anyone acting suspicious. And if you see anything amiss…”

Shurimon brought out a spray bottle from the sleeves of his robes. “Spray them with this. It’s a potion that should undo any shape shifting whether it be from a natural ability or a spell.”

Renamon accepted the bottle. “Understood!”

Before Renamon could make her way out the door, Shurimon called out to her. “Your journey will be starting soon. If there is anyone you want to say good bye to, now is the time.”

The fox said nothing. She just stalked away leaving Shurimon to release a disappointed sigh.

Auditorium

“Alright Ash, if that’s your real name, what did we have for breakfast this morning?”

“How should I know? I just got here!” Ash exclaimed. The PawnChessmon upperclassman in front of Ash had sprayed him and the rest of his friends with a liberal amount of potion. Supposedly the potion should have revealed their “true selves” if they were shapeshifters, but that wasn’t enough for the guard.

“Showing up at the same time a shapeshifter is discovered? That just makes you even more suspicious!” declared the Pawnchessmon brandishing his spray bottle.

“Oh just let us in,” Misty grumbled pushing the guard aside.

As the group passed through, the PawnChessmon called after them. “Okay, but if it turns out that guy is a Fangmon and bites your face off, that’s on you lady!”

With that annoyance out of the way, the group could now focus on the show.

“I wonder what the show’s about,” Ash inquired.

“I met up with Professor Labramon earlier. He said that there should be a variety show while the audience files in and that he’s participating,” Brock informed everyone. “I’m not sure what he’s doing, but he did say that he’d be playing a musical instrument.”

“Huh, I wonder which one,” Agumon placed a claw to his chin.

“He is a historian,” Brock said thoughtfully. “He’s probably using something classic like a shamisen or maybe a cello.”

As the group made their way into the wooden auditorium, they were able to see Labramon on stage, playing a banjo.

“You were close,” Gotsumon remarked taking a seat. “It has strings.”

Misty watched the dog strumming a merry tune on the bluegrass instrument while wearing a classical Johto kimono decorated with a bright, floral pattern and sighed. “I’ll never understand Digimon culture.”

Back Stage

While the verity show played on, Serena rushed to get herself ready for the main performance. Normally she loved to dress up, but with everyone she had met since she had arrived in the Digital World watching the pressure was starting to pile on.

“It’s okay,” Serena muttered to herself. “Just got to remember my lines, say good-bye to everyone, and somehow save the world. No problem. It all starts with getting my dress right.”

“You might need some help with that. It seems as though Shoemon sewed some buttons in the back.”

Professor Labramon, having finished his performance, trotted into the room. Deciding to take his offered help, Serena allowed him to button up the back of her dress. “Is there something wrong, Serena?” asked the history teacher. “You don’t seem to have the energy of either someone ready to perform nor the fidgeting of someone dealing with stage fright."

Looking at the dog’s imploring eyes through the mirror, Serena sighed. “I’m leaving this school.”

“That you are,” Labramon said with a small smile. “Do you want to talk about it?”

“There’s not much to say,” Serena played with her comb. “I’ve been here for several weeks, and I’m no closer to figuring out why I was chosen to help save the world. Renamon and I are complete opposites, I don’t think I’ll be able to connect with her the same way everyone else has been able to connect with their Digimon. All I’ve done is mope around the history department.”

“If you’re trying to tell me you feel useless, I’m going to have to stop you right there,” Labramon said firmly. He placed his paws on her shoulders. “You are a wonderful baker, an excellent seamstress, and a budding choreographer. Not to mention a caring person. Every time I turn around I find you helping one of your classmates. That level of empathy hardly goes disregarded.”

Serena blinked in surprise. “Classmates?”

Labramon dropped to all fours and sat down in front of Serena. “Though you aren’t officially enrolled, I do consider you one of my students. In fact, now seems like an excellent time for a lesson.”

“Isn’t the show about to start?” Serena said giving the door to the stage a weary glance.

“We have a bit of time,” Labramon responded with a chuckle. “There’s a Gomamon in one of my afternoon classes that has been dying to show off her classical seal style juggling routine. I suspect she’s going to milk every minute of it she can.”

Taking a deep breath, Labramon began. “Once upon a time there was an Angemon. Though newly Digivolved, he was very powerful and had a strong sense of justice. He set off on a crusade to right the ills of the Digital World. During his travels he came across a MetalTyrannomon terrorizing a town near a swamp."

“Angered by the android’s rampage, the Angemon tried to fight the ultimate. Though he fought gallantly, Angemon was defeated. He was recovered by an old and jaded Ankylomon who saw no point in fighting the MetalTyrannomon. The Ankylomon just gave the Angemon the safest path out of the swamp and advised him to move on to greener pastures.”

“But the Angemon, young and optimistic, continued to fight and the Ankylomon would continue to recover him. One day, the MetalTyrannomon managed to land a finishing blow on the Angemon almost killing him and the nearby Ankylomon. In a desperate bid to cling to life, the two now friends combined their Digicores into a new Digimon: Shakkoumon”

“Shakkoumon was not only a strong Digimon in battle, carrying both Angemon’s attack power and Ankylomon’s sturdy defenses, but also the best of each Digimon’s personalities: Angemon’s mental fortitude and Ankylomon’s ancient wisdom. Now as one the new Digimon was able to lure the MetalTyrannomon into the swamp. Not possessing Ankylomon’s knowledge of the area, the MetalTyrannomon fell into a sinkhole trapping him long enough for Shakkoumon to fire a beam of light, not unlike the attacks that Angemon had attempted to use numerous times before.”

Labramon gave Serena a little bow. “Thus, now as one, the two differing Digimon defeated their foe.”

Serena looked down at Labramon. “Um, thank you for the story. I’m not sure what this has to do with the school play or fighting Millenniummon, but thank you.”

Despite Serena’s confusion, Labramon continued to smile. “Figuring out the meaning behind that story will be your final homework assignment. But for now, you have a show to start!”

“Excuse me, Professor Labramon?”

Both Labramon and Serena looked over to see Neemon peeking in through the door. “There are some problems in the projection room. Could you give us a paw?”

Shaking his head, Labramon walked out the door. “And just before the show. Murphymon’s law strikes again.”

Before Neemon followed the professor, he looked back and Serena. “Good luck. No, wait!” a worried expression passed over Neemon’s normally serene face. “That’s bad luck. Uh, break an appendage!”

Putting her nerves aside, Serena gave Neemon a nod and headed out onto the stage.

Auditorium

From his spot in the audience, Ash watched the lights dim.

“Finally,” Gotsumon grumbled. “I thought that variety show was going to last forever. Who’s bright idea was it to greenlight that?”

“I liked it,” Betamon mumbled.

“I need to talk to that Elecmon who did the knife juggling. I want to know how many times he almost sliced himself trying to get that routine down,” Agumon said.

“Quiet, I think they are about to start,” Misty hushed the Digimon.

True to Misty’s observation, Serena calmly walked onto the middle of the stage. A spotlight from the projection booth in the back flipped on, revealing the girl in her attire. The dress she wore was pure white with long, flowing sleeves, wings made of silvery, reflective fabric in the back, and ruffles along the edges.

“Interesting costume choice,” Brock commented. “I heard Serena was supposed to be the narrator, someone you would want to blend into the background. But the dress creates a bit of silhouette against the dark background.”

Gaomon, who once again choose to sit near the group of travelers, explained. “Dressing in pure white is a theater tradition for narrators. It’s supposed to symbolize Yggdrasil, the architect.”

“Yggdrasil?” Ash asked.

“It’s a being older then the Digital World itself,” Betamon elaborated.

“It made the Digital World!” Agumon whispered excitedly. “Nobody knows what it looks like. Legend has it that it only appeared a couple times using avatars with white clothes or armor.”

“Really, because I heard its true form is a tree,” Gotsumon whispered back.

“Shhhhh!” Misty shushed the Digimon again with a bit more force.

Up on stage, Serena began speaking in a loud and clear voice. “Long ago, the Digital World was a healthy land that grew and evolved with its citizens. At the height of its evolution, Digimon had grown to be more than just simple monsters. They had become giants, angels, and even gods. Yet despite their development, there were still dangers that threatened this world. From demon lords to invaders from neighboring realities, the Digital World was tested time and time again. As the centuries flew by, the numbers of defenders who would protect the world fell. Finally, the last of the defenders were overcame when Millenniummon manifested.”

The spotlight moved up to the wall behind Serena as a massive shadow was cast within it. Immediately Ash recognized the silhouette of Millenniummon’s head and shoulders with various lines and holes cut into it to show off the details of the behemoth’s body. There was a thin stick attached to the claw sticking out in front of the silhouette which moved the massive arm up and down in a swiping motion. Several other shadow puppets slid into view beneath Millenniummon’s.

“Though their numbers were greatly decreased, the heroes of both this world and the neighboring reality of Illiad attempted to slay the beast, but they were sadly overwhelmed.”

To illustrate Serena’s narration, the jaw of the Millenniummon puppet unhinged and the puppets representing the heroes were sucked inside. The spotlight then descended from the wall back down to Serena who continued to speak. “With the Digital World’s guardians gone, Millenniummon continued to blink in and out of existence. Every time he appeared, the world would become more warped. As a result, resources became scarce and the Digimon banded together into eight kingdoms. These eight kingdoms would fight with one another over their dwindling assets as Millenniummon’s visits became more frequent.”

It was here that Serena stepped back, making way for two Digimon to come barreling onto the stage, a Dracomon and a Ryudamon. “The first of these kingdoms was known as the Dragon’s Roar. It was made up of Digimon whose draconic nature allowed them to seize control of and thrive the volcanic regions of the Digital World.”

As soon as Serena finished her narration, the Dracomon and Ryudamon began dancing around the stage. The Dracomon would chase after the Ryudamon, all the while blasting at the samurai dragon with his fire breath. At some point during the pursuit, Ryudamon spat out two blades. Dracomon caught the first blade while Ryudamon grabbed onto the second. Both dragons ran their blades through the fire Dracomon was blasting out. With both makeshift swords glowing from the excess heat, the two Digimon proceeded to dual each other creating large blasts of sparks which momentarily lite up the auditorium.

While the two dragons dueled, Serena picked up a staff which emanated a dark smoke from its tip. She danced around the dragons as she waved around the staff, creating a ribbon of smoke. At some point during her dance, one of the sparks from the blades ignited the smoke creating a momentary stream of flames reminiscent of a serpentine dragon.

Once the fire dragon fizzled out of existence, the audience applauded.

“Cool!” exclaimed Agumon, slapping his claws together.

“No kidding, that was pretty risky,” Misty observed. “One stray flame and they could have burned down the theater.”

Gaomon nodded. “True, but that just goes to show the level of control both Serena and the students have been able to harness through hours of practice.”

“Also helps that you can see some stagehands holding fire extinguishers,” Gotsumon muttered.

Once the smoke cleared and the applause died down, Serena brought in the next group of students. “In contrast, the Deep Savers claimed cooler regions such as the artic and the sea for colonization.”

This time, a Crabmon scuttled center stage and began blasting out water in a steady yet powerful stream. As the Crabmon spat out its stream, a group of water based Digimon like Gomamon, Swimmon, and Gizamon leapt into the water and swam along. While the water Digimon performed, Serena and some stage hands followed along with some glowing mushrooms. The light from the fungi gave off a cool, blue glow which both illuminated the water and complemented its flow.

The performance ended when Crabmon turns its stream into a geyser which launched the swimmers into the air and onto the stage where they all struck a pose signaling for the audience’s applause.

“Now that’s more like it,” Misty clapped in approval. “Water is a way more safe and reliable element then fire.”

“Tell that to someone who broke their neck slipping on a puddle,” Gotsumon grumbled while he watched the stage hands quickly mop up the massive wet mess left from the stream.

The water cleared up, Serena stepped forward again. “Not waiting for the vast resources of the Digital World’s rainforests to be claimed by someone else, the Jungle Troopers took control of the densest forests they could find.”

This time, a Kunemon crawled onto the stage followed by a prancing Floramon. The Floramon engaged Serena in a waltz. As the two danced, the Floramon released a sweet smelling, pink cloud from the palms of its hands. Meanwhile, the Kunemon “danced” (or as close to a dance as a grub could do) around the pair taking a stop every so often to spit some electrical thread off making it look like it was tossing glowing streamers into the air.

When the dance concluded, Serena ducked into the back allowing Floramon and Kunemon to take the spotlight. The two Digimon bowed to the audience, surrounded by electrical threading that light up their stage like a string of lights.

“Okay, Misty,” Ash leaned over to the water specialist as he applauded. “Even you have to admit that Kunemon had some moves.”

“I guess,” Misty shrugged. “I was paying more attention to the smell from that Floramon’s clouds. I think it was coconut.”

Back on stage, Serena returned. “Not to be held down by any particular patch of land, the beasts of the Nature Spirits spread out over the remaining earth proving themselves to be both adaptable and resourceful.”

Following Serena’s narration, a small team of Bearmon back flipped across the stage in a stunning displaying of gymnastics. Putting their natural physical strength to good use, the Bearmon then performed multiple acrobatic tricks one would think their stout bodies wouldn’t be able to pull off ranging from cartwheels to aerial somersaults.

During the Bearmons’ display a Spadamon leapt into the mix and transformed into its spear form. One of the Bearmon caught the spear and began twirling it around like a baton. The different Bearmon passed on the baton spear as they performed until it was finally handed off to Serena who tossed the spear in the air. The spear transformed back into Spadamon who landed on the stage performing a handstand as he did so.

“Do you think transforming into an object takes away your stomach?” Ash asked during the applause. “Because I think I would have barfed.”

“The Metal Empire did not need to find an environment that suited them. They were experts in reshaping the world around them into towering cities and sprawling urban fortresses to protect themselves.”

On cue, a group of Gotsumon clambered onto stage along with a Zubamon. Unlike the Nature Spirit’s performance, the Gotsumon didn’t dance with the Zubamon. They took turns firing rocks at him. The Zubamon would respond by slicing the rocks allowing the crystals inside to rain down onto the stage.

Watching this Geodude playfully elbowed Gotsumon. “Geo, geodude.”

Gotsumon crossed his arms. “Nope. Pretty rocks take effort and you are not getting that from me. I only shoot boring rocks thank you very much.”

When the Metal Empire’s routine concluded, Serena continued to narrate. “The Wind Guardians looked down at the chaos below and decided to barricade themselves in the clouds using the sky itself as a moat.”

A group of Falcomon and Biyomon leapt down from the auditorium rafters and began to soar and glide throughout the audience. The flock then flew over the stage where they surrounded a Biyomon. The Biyomon was in the midst of creating a tornado of green flames. As the other flying Digimon flew around the twister, the gale from their wings fed into the flames causing the tornado to expand. Just as it looked like the fire was about to engulf the room, the twister tore itself apart and exploded in a series of colorful fireworks which was accompanied by the loud cry of a hawk.

“Okay, now that was dangerous,” Brock said with a frown on his face, though he still clapped.

“I don’t see why you’re worried,” Agumon frowned. “Nobody got hurt.”

“I’m with Brock. The twister was fun to watch, but I couldn’t help but to think about what would happen if someone got caught in that explosion,” Betamon said with a shudder.

“Worrywarts,” Agumon grumbled.

“Adapt to the macabre, the Nightmare Soldiers took refuge in the darkest reaches of the Digital World where they flourished.”

Suddenly all the lights dimmed. For a moment, the entire theater was dark. Then a small group of crescent shaped lights began to glow. The golden lights then danced and twirled around the stage. During the dance, a series of candles began to ignite. Once all the fires were lite, the audience could more clearly make out the Lunamon that was frolicking on stage with Serena using its gravity powers to stay afloat for short periods at a time.

The Lunamon created a series of bubbles which reflected the light of the candles which turned out to be Candlemon. The Candlemon began to hop around reflecting the light of their flames off the surface of the candles creating an eerie light show that accented Lunamon’s and Serena’s dance. Finally, Serena gave Lunamon a boost sending the rabbit high up in the air where it created a large bubble of water which burst and rained down on the Candlemon, temporarily snuffing out their flames and returning the room to darkness.

“Those guys must be popular at Halloween,” Ash commented at the end of the performance.

“What’s ‘Halloween?’” Agumon asked.

“It’s a holiday where you dress up, eat candy, and celebrate spooky things,” Ash explained.

“Hm, sounds like a Pumpkinmon thing,” Agumon said thoughtfully.

When the lights returned, Serena was back on stage. “Though most of the Digital World had resigned themselves to a slow death, the members of the Virus Busters faction were not going down without a fight. Filled with light and hope, they worked to make sure that the Digital World would live to see another day.”

Right as Serena finished her line, a Terriermon came twirling on set followed by a pair of Salamon. As the Terriermon spun around, it picked up the Salamon and tossed them into the air. While the Terriermon continued to spin and juggle the Salamon, the Salamon used their Holy Shoot attack to spit out small balls of light. The orbs spread out into the audience creating an indoor starry sky.

Back on stage, Terriermon tossed the Salamon towards Serena. The paws of the puppies lite up with their Happy Paw attack creating a small explosion of light which hit the reflective fabric making up the wings. The reflected light branched out creating a heavenly glow which morphed into a pair of golden angel wings. For the final touch, the orbs of light in the audience burst creating a shower of golden glitter.

Once again, Serena ducked away to allow the two Salamon and Terriermon to take a bow.

“You know, I really like that never give up attitude. I think I might be a fan of the Virus Busters,” Misty commented while applauding with the rest of the audience.

“Wha-what about the Deep Savers!?” Betamon said with a bit of panic in her voice.

Misty winked at the amphibian. “Don’t worry. Deep Savers will always be number one for me.”

With the factions’ performances done, Serena returned to center stage. “Divided, the Digital World clung to life. But as the years progressed, that life began to dwindle, and the world started to wither and die.”

For a moment, Serena cast her gaze down in a look of sorrow. Then her expression changed to one of determination. “Then one day, in the slums of the Metal Empire, the first human appeared. He started out as an oddity and a simple mercenary. It wasn’t until he successfully defended a settlement from a pack of Nightmare Soldiers lead by his future ally, WereGarurumon, that he began to gain some notoriety.”

On que, a group of canine Digimon lead by a Gabumon wearing a Garurumon mask charged forward against another group of Digimon including a Betamon with a bunch of leaves tapped to its sides, an Agumon with a pair of fake wings strapped to its back, a Shellmon with a pair of fake cannons on its shell, a Bearmon with blue-green dye in its fur, a Kunemon with a lighting shaped cardboard cutout on its tail, a Biyomon with blue dyed feathers, and another Agumon wearing foil around the upper half of its face and green paint on its legs.

The two groups of Digimon participated in a quick mock battle before running off stage. Serena, meanwhile, concluded the play. “From there, the human was recruited for various missions by the different factions. In time he and his team went from a group of mercenaries to leaders. Together, they united the eight factions turning them from kingdoms into teams with each unit using their strengths to cover for one another weakness.”

For a brief moment, Ash flashed back to meeting Gomamon and the Deep Savers and how they used their aptitude in the ocean to help evacuate Agumon’s village.

It was at this time that the shadow puppet of Millenniummon reappeared facing ten new puppets. “Yet despite the human’s teams’ various attempts to hold the Digital World together, Millenniummon continued warp and ravage reality. When he saw his chance, the human took his closest allies met Millenniummon face to face in an attempt to slay the rogue Digimon.”

With that final statement the puppet show ended and the light went back down to Serena. “Though the first human is remembered fondly for saving the Digital World, his work is not finished.”

There was a stutter in Serena’s breath as her body tensed. For a moment Ash thought she was about to cry, but to the girl’s credit she stayed strong and kept her composure. “I want to thank everyone for trying to make me feel at home. Thank you for letting me be in your play, your classes…even just sitting around a talking with me. I know you have high hopes for me and the rest of the humans, and I swear I’m going to make sure it all works out. I don’t know how, but I’m going to find a way to make sure Millenniummon never hurts anyone ever again!”

Serena finished her vow with a small bow. Slowly, one by one, the students in the audience stood up and clapped. Some shouted words of encouragement, others good-byes. Back on stage multiple performers and members of the stage crew came out to hug and give the girl their own farewells. Ash the rest of the travelers were about to head over to the stage to join them when…

THUMP!

There was a sudden shake which rocked the auditorium. This was enough to shock everyone into silence with only the winds, once calm and now howling, could be heard.

THUMP!

The room began to tilt. Everything from props to seats began to slide across the room. The auditorium’s occupants made a mad dash to whatever object they could find that was stable or bolted down. Some tried to move to the highest area of the tilt in a bid to avoid future falling objects. For his part Ash tried to get to the door to see if he could get a look at whatever was causing this.

THUMP!

The trees that held up the theater finally gave and the entire building fell down to the forest floor.

AN: Nice play. But they forgot to mention how the Digital World lived in harmony until the Fire Nation attacked.